For improving the opportunity for bowling a strike in the game of bowling, it is generally known that a bowling ball should be thrown (i.e., "launched") so that the ball contacts the pins in the pocket between the headpin and the adjacent pin (i.e., the 1-3 pocket for right-handed bowlers and the 1-2 pocket for left-handed bowlers). Further improvements can be made by providing spin to the ball so that the ball curves and contacts the pocket at an angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the bowling lane.
Proper positioning of the ball as the ball contacts the pins will depend on a number of factors, including initial lateral positioning of the ball when launched ("launch location"), angle of the launch ("launch angle"), speed of the launch ("launch speed"), and initial spin on the ball ("launch spin"). In addition, other factors such as the coefficient of the friction between the surface of the bowling lane and the ball will also affect the positioning of the ball as it contacts the pins. For example, a lower coefficient of friction will result in less curve on the ball, thereby affecting the ball path.
To analyze a bowler's launch, it is generally known to videotape the ball as it travels down the lane. The videotape can be viewed to determine the general path of the ball. If the ball appears to travel in an improper path, the bowler can adjust the launch to attempt to remedy the problem. However, the videotape cannot indicate the specific source of any errors in the launch. More specifically, if the ball contacts the pins at an improper location, the error could be due to errors in launch location, launch angle, launch speed, launch spin, or coefficient of friction between the lane and ball (unexpectedly high or low friction). Pinpointing the specific source of the error on the videotape would, at best, be mere guesswork, and would likely take an extended period of time for analysis. This is not conducive to providing immediate feedback to the bowler so that the next launch can be compensated accordingly.